The man's voice carried a hint of laughter, yet it was also deep and somewhat oppressive.
Xu Shiyue did not recognize the voice, nor was she familiar with the blurry figure in her mind.
She didn't know if the Lu family's security was reliable, nor did she know if the Xu family's people were really that reckless, so she couldn't help but feel a little nervous.
Then a figure appeared in front of her, and a faint rose scent wafted through the blocked light.
Lu Shizhen stood in front of her.
Xu Shiyue was thus protected behind someone.
The hand that secretly gripped the bread knife was full of vigilance, yet also held a hint of hesitation that was difficult to detect.
She didn't expect this person to come and protect her.
The sunlight streaming in through the window fell sideways into the room, drawing a line between Lu Shizhen and the man not far away.
Lu Shizhen did not inherit the original owner's memories and did not recognize this man. However, this stranger was able to control the TV in the house and enter the house without any hindrance. He also had the appearance of a refined scoundrel. Wasn't that enough to make people wary?
She risked all her points last night to find Xu Shiyue; she can't let anything else go wrong with her.
She remained vigilant, and for some reason, Lu Shizhen felt that the voice sounded somewhat familiar.
Before she could figure out the question, Aunt Sun, who had been in the kitchen, quickly came out and greeted the man who had suddenly walked in with utmost respect: "Young Master."
Lu Shizhen was stunned for a moment.
This man who wasn't friendly to Xu Shiyue turned out to be the original owner's brother who was obsessed with his sister?
As if sensing Lu Shizhen's doubts, Lu Shize took the initiative to ask, "Why didn't Zhenzhen greet her brother?"
The voice was much gentler than before, and even sounded somewhat disappointed.
Lu Shizhen had absolutely no experience in dealing with these situations. Trying her best to imagine what the original owner of this body looked like, she called out "Brother" to Lu Shize, and then asked, "Why are you here?"
"What happened yesterday has caused such a big fuss, Mom knows about it too."
As Lu Shize spoke, he raised his hand and pressed the remote control in his hand, and the TV news he had paused completely exited the interface.
The dark television screen flickered with several waves of light, as if they were connecting, and then Ms. Cheng Meiyan's face appeared on the screen.
The country she visited had a significant time difference from her home country; the sky was already dark on the other side of the camera.
She had just returned from shopping somewhere, her makeup impeccable and a bright smile on her face. She greeted the people around her, saying, "Hello, my darlings, have you missed me these past few days?"
"Mom." Lu Shizhen was caught off guard by Cheng Meiyan's appearance and was momentarily flustered.
You know, the original owner of this body had always been a well-behaved and excellent child in front of her family. What if she managed to get away with it and her true identity was exposed?
However, Cheng Meiyan doesn't need Lu Shizhen to deal with her.
She bypassed her daughter and looked directly at Xu Shiyue standing behind her: "Shiyue, how are you? I was terrified when I heard about this this afternoon. Were you scared too?"
"Thank you for your concern, Auntie. I'm fine." Xu Shiyue calmly shook her head and quietly put down the knife in her hand.
"Oh dear!" A gasp came from the other end of the television. Cheng Meiyan's gentle and kind expression instantly turned tense as she stared intently at the medical bandage on Xu Shiyue's face. "Why is there such a big bandage on your face? Are you alright?"
Remembering that Xu Shiyue was still unconscious when she came back yesterday, Lu Shizhen explained for her, "Mom, don't worry, it's not a big wound. Dr. Qin examined it yesterday, and the wound is very shallow. This is to prevent it from being infected by bacteria in the air."
"Oh, that's good." Cheng Meiyan breathed a sigh of relief, her tenderness growing even stronger. "You must have been terrified, Shiyue."
"It's alright." Xu Shiyue shook her head, still maintaining her calm and nonchalant demeanor.
“What’s so good about it?” Cheng Meiyan disagreed. She was always straightforward and never hesitated to speak her mind. “Your two uncles are really awful, even though they’re blood relatives. If you had been sitting in the car at the time, the consequences would have been unimaginable.”
"He still wants me to take him away? I think I shouldn't have refused him over the phone. I should have flown over there and slapped him twice."
When she got excited, Sung Mi-yeon even gestured a couple of times in the video.
Lu Shize coughed twice, reminding Cheng Meiyan, "Mom."
Cheng Meiyan immediately realized what was happening, smiled and withdrew her hand from the video, saying, "I'm sorry, Shiyue, Auntie isn't someone who advocates violence."
Xu Shiyue shook her head.
She couldn't see Cheng Meiyan's actions on the other end of the TV, and she didn't mind her straightforwardness.
Because of yesterday's turmoil, Xu Shiyue found that her vision had become unclear again.
To her, Cheng Meiyan on the screen was just a blurry outline; the light and shadow shifted in her vision, but couldn't depict her movements.
It was quite a coincidence.
The improvement in her eyesight was just an illusion, much like her wild fantasies these past few days.
No one noticed the fleeting hint of unease in the girl's eyes. Cheng Meiyan, remembering that she had just mentioned Xu Shiyue's family affairs, reassured her, "Shiyue, don't worry about what happens afterward. Shize will handle the cleanup. I'll personally intervene and veto the Xu family. I guarantee they will never harass you or try anything funny with you."
Cheng Meiyan spoke with force and conviction, even more so than when she confronted Sun Chenchen's mothers last time.
As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Shize raised his hand to signal the people outside to come in.
Several burly men strode confidently into the villa, their black suits making them look like walls: "Greetings, Misses! From now on, we will be responsible for the safety of you two young ladies!"
As Lu Shizhen listened to the loud voice, she felt as if her understanding of the world had been refreshed.
She only knew that the original owner's family was powerful and influential, and were top figures in S City, but she never expected that they even had the resources to challenge the Xu family.
No wonder the original owner was able to keep Xu Shiyue's affairs at home so well in the original story, and in the end, the Xu family didn't find out a single thing.
Why would someone from such a good family choose to break the law and commit crimes?
Lu Shizhen felt a pang of regret in her heart, then turned to Xu Shiyue and said, "Now you can settle down with more peace of mind."
Sunlight fell on the girl's face. She listened to Lu Shizhen's words with her eyes down, and did not answer for a moment.
Xu Shiyue admitted that she had acted impulsively this time.
Both she and Luo Ji were too naive to believe that they were still living in the past.
But their backers have fallen, and now they are empty-handed; no one will be willing to stand by them.
Moreover, in her current state, she is unlikely to gain the trust of most people. Who would risk losing their job or even their family life to listen to the instructions of a blind orphan girl?
Lu Shizhen is right. The most important thing for me to do while I'm at the Lu family is to take good care of my health.
She not only wanted to survive, but to live a good life.
The huge villa was quiet, and someone was deep in thought.
Before Lu Shizhen could get a reply from Xu Shiyue, Cheng Meiyan's voice came through the screen.
“Zhenzhen”.
Lu Shizhen immediately tensed up, like a student suddenly called on by the teacher in class: "Mom."
"Have you thought about the explanation your mother asked you to come up with?" Cheng Meiyan asked gently, resting her chin on her hand and tapping her face with her indigo nails.
This time, it wasn't just being called on in class, but also being called on to check homework and suddenly realizing that I hadn't done it yet.
Lu Shizhen became even more nervous, her left hand involuntarily clenching her right palm: "Um... Mom, I..."
Cheng Meiyan chuckled at her daughter's little gesture and waved her hand dismissively: "Alright, you don't need to explain anymore. Whatever you do, you did the right thing this time."
Lu Shizhen felt as if she had been granted a pardon and was about to thank Cheng Meiyan when she was choked by Cheng Meiyan's next words: "However, if you want Shiyue to stay at home, I have a condition."
"Whether you two are adults or not, you are both high school seniors facing the college entrance examination. Your main task is to study, study, and study some more."
"So, please make sure you all rank in the top 50 of your grade in the final exams this semester."
Cheng Meiyan smiled very gently, but her eyes revealed an irresistible pressure.
Lu Shizhen swallowed hard, her mind filled with nothing but rejection.
Her grades in the original world weren't very good, and after graduating from high school, she forgot everything she knew.
These days, the school is having a round of review sessions, and she feels that it would be quite good if she could maintain her ranking in the top 100 of the original owner's grade without dropping.
Top 50 in the grade...
Why make things difficult for someone who's a poor student?
She has sacrificed so much for her legs.
Perhaps noticing the subtle expression on Lu Shizhen's face, Cheng Meiyan turned to Xu Shiyue and said, "Shiyue, our Shizhen has never been in the top 50 of her grade. Could you help her out more if you have the time?"
Looking at the expectation on Cheng Meiyan's face, Lu Shizhen couldn't bear to see her disappointment later.
Why would she agree to let Xu Shiyue tutor her?
Although he gained a lot of points last night, given that the points bug is still not fixed, Xu Shiyue's feelings for him won't be very high.
They share a room and also help each other with their studies.
This is simply unbelievable...
"Don't worry, Auntie."
Before the word "Tan" could even leave Lu Shizhen's mind, Xu Shiyue's voice interrupted her thoughts.
She tilted her head and looked at Xu Shiyue standing to the side with a huge question mark on her face.
Sunlight fell on the girl's slender body, casting her upright figure onto the wall.
She stood there, her expression calm, her voice devoid of any emotion, let alone disgust: "Lu Shizhen, you can come to me if there's anything you don't know how to do."
Crises always throw people into a panic; only by calming down can rationality return to its proper place.
Xu Shiyue did not lower her guard against Lu Shizhen; the question mark was still drawn after the name "Lu Shizhen".
However, she understood that she needed to stay here and bide her time.
This condition is her bargaining chip to stay in this place.
Cheng Meiyan's smile deepened even more.
She leaned on the table and smiled at Lu Shizhen, saying, "Did you hear that? Zhenzhen, you should ask Shiyue for advice as much as you want."
"By the way, Zhenzhen, I heard yesterday that your teacher Wu and you had exams today. Why don't we go ask Shiyue tonight?"
Taking advantage of Xu Shiyue's blindness, Cheng Meiyan gave Lu Shizhen a meaningful look that seemed to be encouraging her.
Lu Shizhen didn't know whether Cheng Meiyan was an ally or someone who came to cause trouble for her, so she forced a smile and nodded.
The night was as black as ink, and the dark clouds obscured the moonlight, as if carrying endless sorrow.
Lu Shizhen stood in front of Xu Shiyue's room, clutching the science exam paper in her hand, her face full of worry: "Qiuqiu, are there any precedents in your system of people losing points because they're considered too stupid?"
“Yes…” Qiuqiu didn’t dare to hide it. “I had a host like that before. The male lead was a top student. I tried a hundred different methods to teach her how to solve problems, but she still couldn’t do it. She lost more than a hundred points in just one night.”
Upon hearing this number, Lu Shizhen gasped in shock.
In the past, she wouldn't have thought much of this number; those who have nothing to lose are not afraid of those who have something to lose.
But she really has 100 points right now, and she really doesn't want to lose a single one...
"Thump, thump, thump."
"Knock knock..."
The antique clock in the downstairs living room chimed on the hour, coinciding with the footsteps coming from the stairwell.
When Aunt Sun, who came to deliver the things, saw Lu Shizhen standing at the door of Xu Shiyue's room for a long time without going in, she thought she was shy and took the initiative to push the door open for her: "Why don't you go in, Miss? Don't keep Miss Xu waiting too long."
Aunt Sun truly lived up to her reputation as the family's experienced housekeeper; with just a word and a single action, she completely blocked all of Lu Shizhen's escape routes.
The test paper made a soft sound as it was held, and she stood there at the door of Xu Shiyue's room, with nowhere left to retreat.
"Miss Xu, please don't take offense. Our young lady is used to being alone and needs time to adjust." With Cheng Meiyan's permission, Aunt Sun warmly pushed Lu Shizhen to sit down in the chair next to Xu Shiyue's desk.
The two chairs were originally placed side by side. When Aunt Sun arranged for Lu Shizhen to sit down, their shoulders touched.
The tray containing the food made a soft sound as it was placed on the table, and a wisp of heat passed between the two of them, the thin fabric of their clothes transmitting warmth between them without any gap.
Because they were so close, Lu Shizhen could smell the faint fragrance in Xu Shiyue's hair. Her heart, which was beating uncontrollably, pounded against her chest once again. She even suspected that this was the faint, abnormal consciousness that remained in the original owner's body, reacting to her contact with Xu Shiyue.
This was the first time the two had such contact while both were fully conscious.
Perhaps because this happened so suddenly, they all fell silent.
Aunt Sun, the culprit, was completely oblivious to the two women's predicament. She smiled and grasped the doorknob, saying, "The fruit platter, coffee, and tea have all been prepared for you two ladies. No one will disturb you from now on."
Then the sound of the door closing echoed in the room, completely blocking out the light from the hallway.
Like a rabbit released from its restraints, Lu Shizhen immediately lifted her chair, as if trying to salvage her precarious points, and moved it outwards with great care: "Um, sorry."
Xu Shiyue shook her head slightly, her voice still calm and unwavering as she asked, "Have you checked the answers to the test?"
"Hmm." Lu Shizhen nodded, looking at the paper in her hand marked with red pen with some nervousness.
"How many points do you estimate you can get?" Xu Shiyue asked, tucking her hair behind her ear.
No one noticed that a blush was hidden beneath the long hair hanging by her ears.
"Biology 83, Chemistry 89, Physics..." Lu Shizhen spoke with great confidence at first, but her voice weakened when she got to Physics, and it became almost inaudible. "Conservatively 65."
The pen tip moved nimbly across the paper, typing out Braille records of Lu Shizhen's achievements.
Xu Shiyue's expression didn't change much as she commented, "Biology and chemistry are fine, but physics is a failure."
The evaluation was fair and exceptionally straightforward, but Lu Shizhen didn't want to give Xu Shiyue the first impression that she had poor grades. Struggling, she muttered softly, "Just one point short."
"Even missing by one point makes it difficult to get into the top fifty," Xu Shiyue reminded her.
Her voice sounded serious, with a hint of meticulousness that comes with post-production work.
Lu Shizhen immediately sat obediently to the side, her lips tightly pursed like a little quail.
“Judging from your scores in the three subjects, you can handle the knowledge points in biology and chemistry on your own. From now on, I will focus my tutoring on physics.” Xu Shiyue analyzed, and slowly took out the Braille textbook from her table. “The reason you failed physics is that your basic knowledge is not up to par. It’s not useful to just explain the wrong questions. We will start with the basics.”
“Okay,” Lu Shizhen readily agreed.
Having just sensed Xu Shiyue's serious attitude, Lu Shizhen immediately became serious as well.
She thought that even if she couldn't really learn it, with such a good learning attitude, Xu Shiyue wouldn't make things too difficult for herself... or her points.
However, things often don't go as planned.
Xu Shiyue's explanation of the basic knowledge points was carried out in an orderly manner, and Lu Shizhen's blinking eyes also blinked in a particularly regular way.
The girl's upright posture, which had been straight just moments before, gradually slumped down like a tree branch bent by the wind.
The pen in my hand pressed against the notebook paper as I wrote down the formulas, watching the tail of the "y" grow longer and longer...
Slowly, slowly, those eyes, which had been opening and closing intermittently, had been closed for nine seconds.
"Host, host, don't fall asleep!"
Suddenly, Qiuqiu's anxious voice rang out in Lu Shizhen's ears.
The girl's head suddenly slammed down, stopping abruptly just before hitting the table.
Lu Shizhen looked around like a rabbit suddenly awakened.
But she found that the pen in her hand had slid to the bottom of the notebook, and the "y" made her stretch it out to the length of the notebook.
Xu Shiyue's voice, explaining the key points, still rang steadily in her ears, and Lu Shizhen realized guiltily that she had actually fallen asleep.
"My God."
Qiuqiu floated beside Lu Shizhen, looking at her disjointed notes, and said, "Host, you'll lose points if you keep going like this."
Lu Shizhen looked at the crooked formulas she had written down in her notebook with a pained expression: "But I'm so sleepy, Qiuqiu."
"This world is magical! She makes me want to sleep whenever I look at a physics book!"
Upon hearing Lu Shizhen's explanation that responsibility rests with the world, Qiuqiu looked at her with a 'Do you think I believe that?' expression: "Host..."
"Doesn't your system have a cheat code that can automatically fill in knowledge? Or you could exchange points for it, or even use memory bread." Lu Shizhen's imagination ran wild, her eyes full of sincerity. "I can eat a lot."
Qiuqiu said apologetically, "I'm sorry, host, I'm just a system with a junior title, I don't have this kind of authority."
"..."
Lu Shizhen didn't want to talk anymore.
She hadn't mastered physics in her original world, and now that she's graduated and gone to university, she's completely let loose, so learning it again would be like starting from scratch.
Why is it that when other people transmigrate into a book, they have all sorts of cheat codes and can use overpowered buffs at will?
But she has to save the female lead and learn physics, and if she doesn't do well in physics, she will face the risk of losing points!
Lu Shizhen felt that she might have been a bitter gourd raised by Xu Shiyue in her past life.
I've come to repay a debt of gratitude in this lifetime.
Seeing Lu Shizhen's distressed expression, Qiuqiu, as a qualified system partner, quickly put her mind at ease and said, "Host, don't put so much pressure on yourself. It's okay if you can't learn it. I can provide you with Xu Shiyue's instructional videos, which you can watch whenever you want."
“That’s one way to go.” Lu Shizhen’s eyes lit up. “Although I can’t keep up right now, the early bird catches the worm.”
"And maybe if I study it myself, I won't feel so sleepy."
“Yes, host.” Qiuqiu nodded frantically in agreement, “You absolutely mustn’t fall asleep, that’s definitely a no-no! Even just being awake and daydreaming is better than falling asleep!”
“Yes, yes, yes, yes.” Lu Shizhen agreed, pitifully hugging her perfect score, shaking her head to fully wake herself up, “Any method is fine, she can’t see, as long as I don’t fall asleep.”
Thinking this, Lu Shizhen began to focus her attention on the strategy.
Looking around, she would stare at anything that caught her attention and made her not want to sleep.
So, from the vase in Xu Shiyue's room to the bedside table, and then to the second plant brother.
The combined effects of physical exertion and the nighttime sleep deprivation were too devastating, causing Lu Shizhen's sleep progress bar to keep dropping.
After looking through Xu Shiyue's room, her gaze finally fell on the room's owner.
The loose-fitting loungewear clung to Xu Shiyue's body, yet her upright posture showed no sign of looseness.
Her long, flowing hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall, bathed in moonlight that gave her a halo of light.
Her hand slowly roamed over the seemingly white book, quietly and silently feeling the words with her fingers.
Lu Shizhen felt that Xu Shiyue had a strange magnetic field.
She is calm, and her calmness is contagious, bringing calmness to others as well.
Xu Shiyue's voice was calm and slow as she explained the knowledge points, and her clear, cool voice had a kind of lonely beauty in the night.
Lu Shizhen discovered that as long as she didn't listen carefully to what she was saying, she wouldn't even feel sleepy.
So Lu Shizhen was infected by her, as if she had found a magic pill that wouldn't deduct points. The drowsy feeling in the dark was instantly dispelled, and her gaze fell entirely on Xu Shiyue.
Compared to what could be seen at a glance just now, Xu Shiyue could not summarize it in a single sentence.
Her excellent bone structure allowed her to maintain her appearance even when she was not in good physical condition. Her light cherry-colored lips were slightly parted, adorned with a fullness that was not too cold.
His raven-feather-like eyes were slightly lowered, and the moonlight shining through the window in front of the desk added a touch of brightness to his originally dim eyes.
Lu Shizhen felt that if Xu Shiyue could see, her eyes would definitely be like that, bright and clear, like they were adorned with countless stars, or like black pearls placed under the moonlight.
The rectangular window framed the moonlight behind the osmanthus tree, letting it gently spill into the room.
Xu Shiyue sat under that beam of moonlight.
It's so beautiful.
She was the kind of beautiful that even a straight woman like her couldn't bear to look away from.
As Lu Shizhen thought this, she slowly raised her hand and unconsciously placed her cheek on it.
She truly lives up to her reputation as the female lead...
Just as Lu Shizhen's gaze was becoming increasingly unrestrained, the girl in her line of sight suddenly stopped writing.
Then she saw the lips she had just carefully drawn part slightly, and the words that had been uttering physics terms turned into her own name: "Lu Shizhen".
In just a moment, Lu Shizhen was completely awake.
Realizing that Xu Shiyue couldn't see, she quickly looked away, maintaining her pen-holding posture, pretending to listen attentively, and looked puzzled when Xu Shiyue suddenly called her name: "What's wrong?"
Xu Shiyue remained calm as she watched the shadow slowly distance itself from her, and reminded him meaningfully, "You've been staring at my face for thirteen minutes now, are you still sleepy?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
